Apparatus for mining coal



Feb. 6, 1934. N, D, L EVlN 1,945,744

APPARATUS FOR MINING COAL Original Filed Deo. 3, 1926 Feb. 6, 1934. N, D, L EvlN APPARATUS FOR MINING COAL Original Filed Dec. 3. 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Feb. 6, 1934 UNITED STES PATENT FICE AFPARATUS FOR MINING CUAL Original application December 3, 1926'. Serial No'.y

Divided and this application February 16, 1929. Serial N0. 340,431V

2 Claims.

The present invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in apparatus for mining coal comprising an elongated conveyor adapted to receive the coal as it is dislodged and to convey it longitudinally of the working face.

The especial object of this invention is to provide readily removable devices adapted to protect the conveyor from contact with the disrupted and dislodged coal.

This and other objects will be fully set forth in the following specification reference being had to the accompanying drawings of which Fig. 1 is a plan view of the head or driving portion of a conveyor adapted to the purposes of this invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the mechanism illustrated in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the foot end portion of the conveyor illustrated in Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the mechanism illustrated in Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a sectional View taken along the line V-V of Figs. 1 and 3.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line VI-VI of Fig. 3.

Fig. 7 is a detail of the removable shields adapted to be used with the conveyor shown.

Fig. 8 is a diagrammatic sectional view showing the conveyor in position in a kerf preparatory to the dislodgment of the coal above the keri.

Fig. 9 is a view similar to Fig. 3 showing the relation of the conveyor to the dislodged coal after the coal has been shot down.

Fig. 10 is a similar diagrammatic view showing the mine working after that part of the dislodged coal, immediately above the conveyor, has been removed.

Like numerals refer to similar parts in the several gures.

In my co-pending application Ser. No. 152,455, iiled December 3rd, 1926, now Patent No. 1,770,934, issued July 22, 1930, of which this application is a division, claims were presented relating to a method of mining coal, and other claims were presented relating to an apparatus adapted to the performance of said method. In that application I have elected t0 prosecute the claims relating to the method per se, and inv response to the requirement for division have presented the present application containing claims relating to the apparatus adapted to carry out said method.

In the drawings, the numeral 1 refers to a sheet metal plate, the lateral edges 2 of which are upturned to form a'pan or trough adapted to rest directly upon the' mine floor'. The numeral 3 refers to a second plate, the lateral edges oi which are turned up to form a similar trough which is inserted between the side flanges 2, and its bottom spaced from the bottom of the go rst mentioned trough, and these ilanges are secured together by suitable rivets, forming a frame, the vertical height of which is less than that of the kerf commonly formed in a coal face by the cutter chain of a mining machine. .5 The frame thus formed is provided at each end with outstanding flanges 4 vadapted to abut against the corresponding flanges of other frame sections. These flanges 4 are pierced by suitable apertures through which project the bolts 5 to 70 connect the several frame sections into a continuous frame of a length corresponding with that of the coal face upon which the contemplated mining operations are conducted. In the space between the plates 1 and 3 travels the 75 return strand of an endless conveyor belt 6, the carrying strand of which slides upon the upper surface of the plate 3 in position to receive and transport material deposited thereon. Attached to one end of the main frame thus built up,is 30 a foot section 7 composed of plates similar to those above described but suiciently expanded to contain the foot roller 8, which is rotatably supported upon a shaft 9 xed tothe side iianges 10 of said foot section. Gver this foot roller 8, 35 the belt 6 travels from the lower to the upper strand of the conveyor, and a guide plate 10a attached to the side flanges 10, engages the upper surface of said belt and guides it into the trough of the main frame 1.

To the end oi the main conveyor frame, remote from therfoot section 7, Yis attached ahead section 11 which is suitably reinforced and expanded to support the driving mechanism of the conveyor belt 6. of the head section 11 are journal bearings 13 in which is supported the head wheel 14 over which the belt 6 turns from the upper or carrying runway to the lower or return runway, and this wheel 14 is so positioned and arranged that 100 it may overhang a suitable receptacle, such as a mine car or a take away conveyor, into which the coal may be delivered for transportation from the mine. At the end of the head section 11 adjacent the main conveyor frame, I have provided 105 guide plates 12a which project inwardly from the side plates l2 and engage the upper surface of the conveyor belt 6 to guide it from the horizontal runway of the main conveyor frame to the inclined runway of the head section. While the `1m Secured to the side plates 12 95 projection of these guide plates 12a is sufficient to hold the conveyor belt 6 to the desired line of draft, their proportions are such as to preserve a clear passageway for the superimposed material traveling with the belt 6, and the form of the adjacent edges of the guide plates 12a is such as to offer a minimum obstruction to the passage of said superimposed material. Attached to the side plates 12 are castings 15 in each of which are formed suitable journal bearings for the support of three driving pulleys 16, 17 and 18, and these pulleys are rotatably connected together by the spur gears 19, 20 and 21 to insure their revolution at the same peripheral speed. The shaft 22, upon which the pulley 17 is mounted, extends beyond its supporting bearing, and to its end is iixed a bevel gear 23 which engages a bevel pinion 24 mounted upon the shaft 25. The shaft 25 is journaled in suitable bearings attached to the conveyor frame, and is connected by a shaft coupling 26 with the motor 27 by which the conveyor mechanism is actuated. The motor 27 may be of any preferred type suitable to the condition under which the machine operates.

.above the belt 6.

In the drawings, I have shown an electric motor adapted to receive its actuating current from any convenient source of electric current supply, through a flexible cable, and to be controlled by controlling devices not shown in the drawings. Since such devices are Well understood in the mining art, and since they form no part in the present invention, their illustration and description is not thought to be required at this time.

The conveyor belt 6 engages all three of the driving pulleys 16, 17 and 18 to secure increased driving effort and insure against the slipping of the belt over the driving pulley, and a belt tightener pulley 28 engages a loop 29 of the belt 6 to maintain the desired tension upon said belt. The belt tightener pulley 28 is mounted in the journal boxes 30 which are slidable in guide WaysY 31 of the side frame 12 and to these journall boxes are attached the tensioning ropes 32 which are windable upon the tensioning shaft 33. The shaft 33 is mounted in suitable bearingsA of the machine frame and is formed with asquarer end 34 adapted to be engaged by a suitable wrench whereby the shaft may be rotated to wind the ropes 32 and thereby adjust the tension ofthe belt 6. A disc 35 fixed to the shaft 33 is provided with peripheral notches 36 adapted to be engaged bya detent 37 to lock said shaft against rotation in the unwinding direction, and thereby maintain the desired` tension upon the conveyor belt 6.

The conveyor above described is especially adapted to be inserted in a kerf formed in an extended coall face, in position to receive the disrupted coal as it is dislodged from the vein above the kerf. It is apparent that if the coal above such a conveyor is thrown down upon the carrying belt along the entire length of the coal face, the weight of such coal upon the conveyor belt would so overload the apparatus as to prevent its movement.` To prevent such overloading I have provided the shield plates 38, as illustrated in Fig- 7, which are adapted to rest upon the upper edges of the side iianges 2 of the conveyor frame, to receive and support the dislodged coal Stifening angle bars 39 attached to the underside of the shield plates 38 serve to stiften said plates, and these angle bars are of such length that, by engagement with the inner faces of the flanges 2, they prevent lateral displacement of the shield'plates 38.

In the method of mining here contemplated, the coal is reclaimed from panels, or blocks of the vein, the width of which corresponds with the length of the working place, and spaced along one side of the working panel, is provided a recess for the driving section 11 and its actuating motor. In the practice of this method, a kerf 40 is iinst formed at the base of the vein extending along the working face, and a sufficient clearance for the foot section 7 is prepared by snubbing the coal above the kerf 4() at the foot end of the face. The conveyor above described may then be positioned within the kerf 40, as shown in Fig. 8, with the shield plates 38 in position to protect the entire effective length of the conveyor belt 6. After the conveyor has been thus adjusted, the coal above the kerf may be dislodged in any preferred and suitable manner such as by blasting, causing the disrupled coal to fall directly upon the conveyor structure, as illustrated in Fig. 9. The motor 27 may then be actuated to drive the conveyor belt 6, andthe shield plate 38, nearest to the driving section of the conveyor, may be removed to allow the broken coal to fall upon the belt 6 to be transported thereby to and over the head wheel 14. After all of the coal which will fall to the belt has been thus removed, the next shield 105 plate 38 may be withdrawn, and the operation, as above described, continues progressively along the conveyor until the coal has been removed from the entire length of the coal face. A certain amount of broken coal will ordinarily remain upon the mine floor at each side of the conveyor structure, as shown at 41 and 42 of Fig. 10. After this residue has been sho-veled onto the conveyor the coal vein may be again undercut 4and the operation above described repeated until the entire 1`I5 panel has been removed.

What I claim is:

1. In an apparatus of the class described, the combination with a horizontally extending plate having upturned iianges along its lateral edges, 120 of a second plate having similar upturned flanges interposed between the rst mentioned flanges above the rst mentioned plate, the adjacent flanges being secured together with their upper i edges in substantially the same plane to form a 125 rigid frame having an upper runway and a lower runway, and an endless conveyor element adapted to travel in -said runways as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In combination, a conveyor frame comprising 1'30 a pair of upwardly open sheet metal troughs, one nested within the other with their side Wallscontacting, the upper edges of the side wallsl of the two troughs being in substantially the saine plane, ihe bottom of the inner trough spaced above the '135 bottom of the outer trough and an endless draft device having its lower run operating in the space between the bottom walls and its upper run operating in the upper trough and below the edges thereof, cover plates adapted to be placed across said frame to be supported directly on the top edges thereof, a transverse reinforcing means on the cover plates and depending between the side walls when the plates are placed on the frame, said rneansbeing engageable by material moving 145 along the frame to be moved therewith.

NILS D. LEVIN. 

